Tuesday, September 07, 2010

Dining to Make a Difference

If the list of restaurants you'd like to try is as long as your arm but your wallet is looking a little thin these days, you'll want to check out Portland Eats Out. A discount dining club with a difference, it's got a stellar lineup of local restos that's growing by the day, and it offers a 15% discount on meals when you dine from Sunday through Thursday.

So what makes it different from other discount groups? Just this: ten percent of each $69 membership (that's $6.90 for you non-math types) will go to the Oregon Food Bank to help feed hungry Oregonians. Even better, the discount is good for a table of up to four people as long as one is a card-carrying member of the club.

It was started by local entrepreneur Stacy Stahl, owner of a couple of local talent agencies, who wanted to give back to the community and help out restaurants that are struggling in the tough economy. After announcing her idea at a dinner with friends (who heartily encouraged her), she went out and made it happen.

Chefs and restaurants are flocking to the cause, since it costs them nothing and fills empty seats on off nights, with the list ranging from top-flight destinations to those with family-friendly menus and even food carts. And who can't get behind that?